1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to locks for an electrical power meter box.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Although in at least some jurisdictions to do so is a criminal act, unauthorized use of electrical power is a major problem for electrical utilities. Detecting and prosecuting unauthorized use of electricity by commercial establishments is an expensive and difficult task. Certain businesses, such as supermarkets, have a generally constant load factor which can be monitored by computer to detect abrupt load increases. However, those who make unauthorized use from the beginning of electrical service cannot be detected by computer, since there is no track record or history of electricity usage. Thus, unauthorized use may often only be detected by meter readers or other field personnel.
Commercial electrical power meter boxes, also known in the industry as cans, have been manufactured the same basic way for many years. The boxes are comprised of a front half and a rear half, with the two halves being hinged together at the top. To gain access to tap and use electricity without authorization, one need only open a meter box or can and close the master power switch. To protect against such unauthorized entry, tabs at the bottom of the box halves have in the past been held closed together with a wire seal. A broken seal indicated unauthorized entry into the meter box.
A meter reader making periodic power usage readings could then also inspect the seal to determine if it had been broken. If so, it is probable that unauthorized entry into the meter box was likely and that unauthorized use was being made of electrical power. However, the seal was located at the bottom wall of the meter box approximately halfway between the front and back of the box.
For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,008,104 a bolt is inserted through the tabs in lower wall of a meter cover and secured with a nut. A seal is inserted through openings or apertures in the bolt and nut to prevent unauthorized access to the meter. The seal was, however, at the bottom of the meter cover, a location typically at or below waist level of a meter reader. Unless the meter reader was particularly thorough and took the extra time to check the seal, a broken seal could be undetected for some period of time.
Examples of other electric power meter locks are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,031,722; U.S. Pat. No. 4,080,8111; U.S. Pat. No. 4,144,729; U.S. Pat. No. 4,254,647; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,414,829. All of these patents provided locks for meter cans having an openable front cover. However, none of these locks were adapted to be used on commercial meter enclosure boxes nor did these locks locate the seal in an easily visible position.
Examples of locking ring assemblies for glass meter covers are found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,329,860 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,415,190. Examples of other types of locks are U.S. Pat. No. 1,067,549; U.S. Pat. No. 1,188,886; U.S. Pat. No. 1,664,820; U.S. Pat. No. 3,157,040; U.S. Pat. No. 3,172,282 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,406,358.